Management Response

: Ethiopia
: 2017 - 2020 , Ethiopia (CO)
: UN WOMEN ETHIOPIA COUNTRY PORTFOLIO EVALUATION 2017-2020
:
: Ethiopia
:

The evaluation has identified 8 recommendations for enhancing UN Women’s contributions to GEWE results, with a focus on the development of the next Strategic Note. These recommendations are based on insights and evidence gathered throughout the CPE
: Approved
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 1: Based on the development of clear theories of change for the overall portfolio and each thematic area, consolidate program outputs and streamline activities. The new Strategic Note should focus on integrated, strategic interventions and partnerships based on coherent pathways for achieving sustainable GEWE results
Management Response: While UN Women Ethiopia Country Office (ECO) has increased its program footprint over the past years, ECO fully agrees that there is a need to shift focus from outputs, activities and incremental progress to transformational outcomes and impact. More streamlined approaches, strategic positioning, a consistent focus on outcomes, and a robust results-based management and reporting system will be put in place to realize strategic results. ECO structure affected the approaches taken, and despite additional resources mobilized and ECO’s committed and dedicated staff, increased capabilities and some reorganization of internal structures is needed to ensure high level gender technical expertise, advice, and influence on persistent and emerging GEWE issues will be effectively delivered. ECO will have a stronger emphasis on providing strategic, high-impact technical, policy and normative expertise that enables transformative change, and a move away from implementing many small-scale activities across disparate geographies, governance levels, and thematic areas. This approach entails and requires a focus on building capacity among partners to expand, strengthen, implement, and monitor normative gender equality frameworks, laws, policies, standards, institutions, and practices, and advance the creation of new ones where there are gaps.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Not applicable
Operating Principles: Alignment with strategy
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness, Efficiency, Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Develop a new Strategic Note results framework and overall theory of change of the program which is derived and is aligned with the results framework and theory of change of the UNSDCF and adhere to UN Women Strategic Plan 2022-2025 UN Women 2021/10 Completed ECO SN 2021-2025 is at the final stage of technical review at the HQ level and will be endorsed in December 2021
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 2: As part of the Strategic Note development sharpen analysis of intersecting forms of inequality and incorporate a conflict sensitivity lens, and strengthen systems to track progress include vulnerable and marginalized women and girls.
Management Response: ECO made important contributions to mainstreaming gender equality in the production and use of gender statistics in Ethiopia. Utilizing good practices and international guidelines, ECO will continue to build the relationships it developed with Central Statics Agency (CSA), sector ministries, research institutions, civil society organizations, academia and international organizations, to harmonize and intensify efforts to improve regularly available, reliable, quality, comparable, timely and accessible gender data in Ethiopia. ECO will focus on supporting the role gender data plays in informing priority setting and enabling gender-responsive policy formulation and implementation in different settings, and on monitoring and implementation of GEWE and Sustainable Development Goals. A new and growing area of involvement will be supporting the production and use of quality citizen generated data. ECO will focus on greater investment in generating, coordinating, and sharing relevant, high-quality data, knowledge, models and standardized tools through research, analysis and documenting practice with partners. This will include strengthening capacities to produce, analyze and use gender statistics.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Not applicable
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM, Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Efficiency, Effectiveness, Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
To center intersectionality and focus on young women, displaced women, women with disabilities, women migrants and refugees, and others who are at risk of being left behind in the SN 2021-2025 UN Women 2021/10 Completed ECO SN 2021-2025 is at the final stage of technical review at the HQ level and will be endorsed in December 2021.
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 3. Develop strategies to address highly sensitive GEWE and human rights issues in programming and normative work, including through coordination with UN sister agencies.
Management Response: UN Women ECO played a key role in responding to the needs of vulnerable and marginalized women, particularly survivors of violence and women and girls who are internally displaced. An explicit focus on the priorities of some vulnerable groups of women and girls is needed, including women with disabilities, women and girls living in conflict contexts, and IDPs. Given the lack of robust gender data in the country, in future programming and normative work, there is a need to develop strategies to address highly sensitive gender and human rights issues, and to identify vulnerable women and girls and marginalized groups. ECO will continue mainstreaming strategies to shift discriminatory gender norms in all aspects of the program, and maintaining some targeted support to civil society organizations, faith-based organizations, and the media. Emphasizing strategies explicitly intended to transform the underlying social structures, policies and broadly held norms that perpetuate and legitimize gender inequalities in all aspects of the program, while maintaining some targeted support to civil society organizations, faith-based organizations, and the media that are fostering critical examination of inequalities and gender roles, norms and dynamics and promoting the relative position of women, girls and marginalized groups.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Global norms and standards (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance, Alignment with strategy
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM, UN Coordination, Partnership, Normative Support
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness, Relevance, Impact, Human Rights, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
To add explicit strategies in the SN 2021-2025 to enhance the UN system’s performance and accountability in support of GEWE, and influencing and mobilizing action, commitments, and resourcing decisions among key development actors. UN Women 2021/10 Completed ECO SN 2021-2025 is at the final stage of technical review at the HQ level and will be endorsed in December 2021.
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 4: Consider including Women, Peace and Security as a thematic area in the new Strategic Note. Undertake a detailed analysis using the SN development tools to determine the best way to ensure relevant WPS outcomes are incorporated in the ECO portfolio.
Management Response: While ECO has not had an explicit focus on Women, Peace and Security previously, due to persistent conflict and humanitarian crises in Ethiopia, there is demand for UN Women to intensify work in this area and on and humanitarian action, and to ensure that a gender inequality lens is prioritized in approaches to disaster preparedness and response, including climate related disasters. Ensuring that women ́s experiences of the conflict and resulting needs are taken into consideration, that their contributions to conflict prevention and peacebuilding are heard and prioritized and that women are systematically involved at key decision-making tables on peace, security, humanitarian and recovery is a priority.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Peace and security (SPs before 2018), Global norms and standards (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Alignment with strategy
Organizational Priorities: Normative Support, Culture of results/RBM, Humanitarian action
UNEG Criteria: Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Develop explicit strategies in advancing the Women, Peace and Security agenda in the new SN 2021-2025 UN Women 2021/11 Completed ECO SN 2021-2025 is at the final stage of technical review at the HQ level and will be endorsed in December 2021.
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 5: Explore mechanisms and develop a strategy on ECO’s support to emerging women’s movements, networks and feminist organizations. Help broker and institutionalize a more consistent, sustained role for women’s rights organizations to engage in normative dialogue and decision making at all levels.
Management Response: UN Women ECO addressed some of the root causes of gender inequality and human rights in its work in Ethiopia, but more strategic, system-based shifts are needed to ensure that women and women-led organizations contribute to decision making, the development, implementation and monitoring of laws, policies and action plans, humanitarian response strategies, and decisions on funding. UN Women’s demonstrated experience convening government, women’s civil society organizations and development partners was highly valued, and there is a demand for increased focus and effort in facilitating dialogue, consultations, and forums for women to share their expertise, needs and priorities at all levels.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Peace and security (SPs before 2018), Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018), Ending violence against women (SPs before 2018), Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018), Leadership and participation in governance systems (SP 2018-2021)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, National ownership, Promoting inclusiveness/Leaving no one behind
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM, Normative Support, Partnership, UN Coordination
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Develop explicit strategies in expanding engagement with networks and multi-stakeholder partnerships that bring diverse groups and voices together, particularly developing and strengthening women’s organizations and feminist movements, and their links with the GoE at all levels. UN Women 2021/10 Completed ECO SN 2021-2025 is at the final stage of technical review at the HQ level and will be endorsed in December 2021.
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 6: Strengthen the quality and usability of ECO’s results-based management and reporting systems to enable clearer tracking of progress towards results.
Management Response: In support of delivering high-quality programming and strengthening results-based management (RBM), ECO will strengthen its M&E system to collect data, monitor and report on cumulative progress during the SN period 2021-2025, both in its Results Management System (RMS) and to its external partners. To strengthen the capacities of ECO staff and its partners, and to ensure the standards are applied, standard operating procedures (SOPs)/toolkits and trainings on monitoring and program feedback will be developed and applied during the SN 2021-2025. The office will also contribute to UNCT-level monitoring and reporting on the UNSDCF 2021-2025 implementation, especially regarding gender-sensitive outputs and indicators, through technical support and periodic meetings of the outcome results groups. These monitoring methods will both continuously assess the progress of ECO towards the achievement of its outcomes, while also documenting lessons learnt and successes for scaling up and sharing good practices to inform further programming.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Not applicable
Operating Principles: Knowledge management, Oversight/governance, Evidence, Data and statistics
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities, Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Efficiency, Effectiveness, Not applicable
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
To streamline and enhance the M&E framework to be used as a critical tool for learning, management, adaptation of strategies, and results orientated analysis of the extent that activities are building towards outcomes or strategic results under the SN’s Development Results Framework (DRF) and Organization Efficiency and Effectiveness Framework (OEEF). UN Women 2022/02 Completed
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 7: Undertake an assessment of the role, resourcing, institutional structure, strategies and results of the Regional Liaison Unit and its relationship within the Ethiopia Country Office.
Management Response: In 2022, The UN Women Liaison to African Union (AU) and the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) operating under the Ethiopia Country Office is proposed to be established as a separate Liaison presence to advance continental GEWE priorities in policies, processes and initiatives. As a result, Liaison priorities and activities are not included in the Ethiopia Country Office Strategic Note for 2022-205. Therefore, pending the finalization of the establishment of the new Liaison office presence, an annual work plan covering 2022 will guide programming and partnerships at the regional level. The transition period will thus facilitate the development of a full-fledged Liaison Office SN for 2023-2025.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Not applicable
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance
Organizational Priorities: Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Relevance, Human Rights, Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
To plan and execute Liaison Office Evaluation to inform the planning process of the Liaison Office Strategic Note 2023-2025 UN Women LO 2022/06 Completed Liaison office has already developed its own AWP 2022 and it has been submitted to RO for technical review . LO has started their dedicated SN development process
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 8: Undertake an analysis of ECO’s interventions and results related to transformative gender approaches and shifting gender norms, in different thematic areas and programming contexts. Determine how to best advance this work from a more strategic level, including partnering with women’s organizations at the community level.
Management Response: UN Women ECO established itself as a credible and trusted leader on GEWE in Ethiopia, achieving important results and delivering technical and substantive knowledge, capacity building and normative results related to its thematic areas. Enhancing and sustaining transformative change requires greater investment in high-level strategies that address systemic and structural barriers to GEWE, including adopting and implementing gender-responsive laws and policies, including on ending VAWG, increasing women’s leadership, expanding women’s economic rights, engaging on peace and security issues, and strengthening the collection and monitoring of gender data. Due to size of the country and CO resources, more focus on and investment in upstream interventions and strategies aimed at transforming fundamental structures, and a scaling back of diverse, smaller scale activities, is needed to consolidate gains and strengthen mechanisms, platforms and relationships that would enable women’s movements and machineries to articulate their agenda and consistently advocate for it.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Global norms and standards (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance, Promoting inclusiveness/Leaving no one behind, National ownership, Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM, UN Coordination, Partnership, Normative Support
UNEG Criteria: Impact, Sustainability, Not applicable
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Add explicit strategies to continue to expand the space for women’s organizations and feminist movements to advocate for gender responsive reform and promoting women’s and girls’ participation in decision-making and leadership in all the UNSDCF’s priority areas, including work related to unpaid care work and decent work for women, conflict prevention and peacebuilding, humanitarian response and recovery, and climate action. UN Women 2021/10 Completed Explicit strategies are added in the SN 2021-2025